HCU suicide: Classes start at University of Hyderabad

Hyderabad: The University of Hyderabad wore almost a deserted look on Monday as the agitators toned down their protests and reached a conditional truce with the university administration.

Classes were conducted and for the first time in two weeks, since the suicide of Rohith Vemula, the varsity administration was allowed to function.

On Monday, the SC-ST Faculty Forum of UoH called off their relay hunger strike and went back to conducting classes on the condition that Prof. Appa Rao Podile or Dr Vipin Srivastava did not return as vice chancellor of the university.

The Joint Action Committee for Social Justice, which was spearheading the protests by students in the university, gave an ultimatum of 10 days to the university's administration that is being headed by interim vice chancellor Dr M. Periasamy to fulfill all their demands.

The three students who were on indefinite hunger strike including the two Dalit scholars who were suspended along with Vemula were admitted to the university health centre at around Sunday midnight after which they called off the fast.

However the JAC said that it would continue the relay hunger strike.
The university released a circular that the last date for payment of semester fees and registration was extended to February 8  from January 20.

The semester, which was earlier planned to be cut short to four months, from January to April rather than June keeping in mind the water crisis in university, is also expected to be extended.

Dontha Prashant, one of the four Dalit research scholars suspended from the hostel along with Vemula said that they would continue their protests by not returning to the hostel until all demands were met. Their suspension was revoked conditionally by the university.